Almanac

Schools - March 23, 2011

Life is pandemonium on M-A stage

By Lyn Napel, parent volunteer for the M-A Drama Boosters.

Navigating the world of pre-adolescence is tough enough, but when you factor in all the stresses of competing in the "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," life is pandemonium, as they say in the song from the play.

Menlo-Atherton High School is staging this Tony-award winning Broadway musical comedy, which opened Friday night and runs through March 26, with live accompaniment by students from M-A's orchestra.

Remaining performances are on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, March 24-26, starting at 7:30 p.m., at the performing art center on the M-A campus. Use the Ringwood Avenue entrance, just off Middlefield Road in Atherton.

In the play, six young spellers convene in the local high school gym for the annual county spelling bee, only to find that parental pressures and pre-pubescent stress send them into overdrive as they compete for the championship title.

Come see your favorite M-A teachers and staff on the hot seat as they attempt to spell alongside the student actors!

The music and Busby Berkeley-like dance numbers will have you moving in your seat. You can't help but cheer for this adorable cast of misfits, clumsily trying to make sense of all the chaos that surrounds them.

Admission is $12 for adults and $8 for students, staff and seniors.

Visit tinyurl.com/bee-318 to buy tickets. They can also be purchased at the box office.